As time passes there are endless diseases and illnesses that our discovered, incurable, and that trouble our society. In the book The Broken Cord there are many contemporary issues that are raised through the lives of the characters. We learn of the disease Fetal Alcohol Syndrome through one of the main characters (Adam). Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is passed to a child during pregnancy, by his/her mother's consumption of alcohol. This stigma is something that will haunt an individual for a lifetime. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome disturbs more Native Americans than any other ethnic group. The severity of the disease is very important. Depending on which trimester the mother consumed alcohol; the child has increased risks of having the disease as well as having a severe case. As we encounter the main focus of The Broken Cord, Michael Dorris" way of dealing with Adam his inffected son, we learn a lot about the disease, and the characters. Adam's case is rather severe, and we learn that his story is sad, yet inspirational. Adam is an adopted Native American, and his father is half Native American, which enables them to easily understand all the elements of this syndrome. Coming to terms with the disease is not the entire focus of this book, as it deals with alcoholism in general, Native American culture, education, the health care system, adoption, as well as other important issues. .
As we explore the many issues that this book deals with, we learn a lot about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, as well as Alcoholism in general. In The Broken Cord, we see how the alcoholism of Adam's mother left a life long impact on his life, as well as the people in his life. It was described "alcohol abuse is the most severe and widespread health problem among Indians today," (86). Also according to the text we learned, that in 1975 nearly fifty-percent of Indians had immediate family problems relating to alcohol and among Indians, the alcohol related death rate was six and one-half times that of the national rate, (87).
